Bee stings hiker, son saves the day

Bee stings hiker, son saves the day

SABINO CANYON, Ariz. (KGUN9-TV) - First responders flooded to the Sabino Canyon area after a woman on the Seven Falls trail was stung by a bee.

Eight Pima County Search and Rescue deputies, a Rural/Metro Fire Department truck and ambulance arrived on scene. But the real first responder was the hiker's 18-year-old son.

"I wasn't really thinking; I just took the EpiPen from her and gave it to her," Jake Smith said.

The bee stung Smith's mom miles away from the trailhead. He says she is very allergic and her throat started to swell. He stabbed her with the EpiPen and immediately saw results.

"Definitely amped her up a lot," Smith said. "Her heart rate definitely went up and everything, but she seemed to be doing better after I administered it to her.

So much better, in fact, that the duo started making their way down the trail. Smith said they trekked 2.5 miles before Search and Rescue deputies met up with them.

Even though he held his mom up while hiking down the trail, he said she was a trooper.

"She didn't want to stop," he said. "I tried to get her to stop but she was really good and strong about it. My breathing was probably worse than hers."

Deputies said that because of her allergy, the hiker always carries an EpiPen with her, just in case. In this rescue, that EpiPen was used just in time. She opted out of a hospital visit and was able to go home.

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